


No.16 Broken Bones

by LiGi



Series: Febuwhump 2021 [16]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Broken Bones, Caring Gwaine (Merlin), FebuWhump2021, Gen, Hurt Percival (Merlin), Pain, no 16, so here is some, there isn't much percival whump around
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-17
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-12 01:35:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,176
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29502114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiGi/pseuds/LiGi
Summary: Febuwhump 2021 day 16 - Broken BonesPercival takes a tumble with a bad landing.
Relationships: Gwaine & Percival (Merlin)
Series: Febuwhump 2021 [16]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2137632
Comments: 4
Kudos: 29





	No.16 Broken Bones

**Author's Note:**

> Betaed by the wonderful Onehelluvapilot once I finally got it done!  
> Ugh, I am late again, I know! But it is still the 16th in some places of the world, even if not here. So it still TECHNICALLY counts!

“Oi!” Gwaine hurried after Percival. His legs had to move twice as fast to keep up with Percival’s long strides.

Percival chuckled but slowed his pace, letting his shorter friend catch up. Gwaine elbowed him in the ribs with a grin. They continued on, following the game trail up the side of an incline, ducking under trailing branches and crunching fallen twigs beneath their boots.

“What’s the betting Merlin and Arthur are bickering so much they’ve scared the prey away?” Gwaine asked idly, bored of the silence.

“I’d put money on it,” Percival answered with a laugh.

The hunting party had split up to follow several different deer tracks and the last thing they had seen of those two, before following their own path in a different direction, was Arthur smacking Merlin around the back of the head and shoving him into a bramble bush.

Gwaine sniggered. He didn’t know how the two of them hadn’t murdered each other yet. Probably only because Merlin was so bloody devoted to the prince.

Percival reached over and slapped a hand over Gwaine’s mouth to quieten his laugh, his other hand pointing a little way ahead of them to where a deer had just stopped eating and was glancing around with wide eyes. He gave Gwaine a hand signal then stepped forwards, staggering as the mud he was standing on shifted. Then with a surprised yelp, he threw out his arms as the ground beneath his feet gave way to a steep cliff.

Gwaine grabbed him, one hand tight around his bare bicep, the other snatching at the buckles on the front of his chainmail. But Percival was already falling and Gwaine wasn’t strong enough to hold his friend’s weight. He was dragged down over the edge as well. They tumbled down the side of the cliff in a rain of dirt and rocks, landing in a heap, the air knocked from their lungs.

There was a crack as they landed and Gwaine flinched, instinctively tensing every muscle in his body. But it was Percival that yelled out in pain.

Coughing, Gwaine desperately blinked away the black dots dancing in his vision and tried to sit up from where he had landed half on top of Percival. His back screamed agonisingly, his arms shaking as he pushed himself up, but he didn’t think anything was broken. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for Percival.

The big knight was crumpled over on his side, his face screwed up in pain. And his leg was bent in the wrong place.

“Shit,” Gwaine ground out, lifting himself off of Percival’s chest, his fingers pulling as they got caught under the buckle of Percival’s chainmail. “Perce?”

Percival grunted, pressing his forehead into the ground beneath him and curling up as much as he could without moving his broken leg.

“Percival, talk to me,” Gwaine urged, letting his hands slide down his friend’s arms and side, checking for other injuries.

“Ugh, I feel like I fell off a cliff,” Percival groaned.

“You did.” Gwaine looked up the wall of earth at their side. They had unknowingly been walking on an overhang above a sheer drop, and Percival’s weight had been more than it could take. “Where hurts?”

“Leg.”

“Yeah, I spotted that one.” Gwaine tried to keep his tone light. “Anywhere else? Your back?”

Percival froze for a second, holding his breath as he assessed himself for damage. He released it with a huff, and shook his head. Gwaine sighed in relief.

“You?” Percival said through gritted teeth. He tried to push himself upwards, but Gwaine put a hand on his shoulder to keep him down. Despite that, Percival leant up onto one elbow, his other hand gripping Gwaine’s wrist solidly. “Are you alright?”

“Achey, bruised, but nothing too bad.” He gave him a smile. “Let me look at your leg.”

Gwaine firmly pushed Percival back down to the ground, rolling him onto his back. He ran his palm down his left leg until he got half way down the shin, just below the top of his boot, where it bent sideways at an unnatural angle. Percival whimpered and jerked under Gwaine’s hold.

“Steady, my friend.” Gwaine tried to carefully take the boot off but Percival cried out and pulled himself into a sitting position to bat at Gwaine’s hands roughly.

“No, no, no! Gwaine! Stop, leave it!” His voice was tight and frantic with pain and he was gasping in and out raggedly, tears streaming down his cheeks. His eyes were clouded with agony.

Gwaine swore and sat back, unsure whether to obey to Percival’s protests or not, the pained moans like a knife twisting in his stomach. He needed to look at the injury, but if the boot was helping immobilise the bone then maybe it would be better to leave it. If only Merlin was with them…

They couldn’t have gotten too far away. He patted Percival’s shoulder then pushed himself up onto his knees, cupping his hands around his mouth.

“Merlin!” he yelled as loud as he could, ignoring the pain it caused his throat. He coughed, the effort straining his aching chest, but he had to try again. “Arthur!”

Percival put a hand on Gwaine’s chest as he sagged back to the ground, coughing and clutching his side.

“You alright?” he asked. Gwaine nodded.

“Yeah, bruised ribs, I think. I’ll be fine.”

He looked back down at Percival’s leg, biting his lip. If it started to swell his boot would be stuck. He shook his head; he was going to have to take it off.

“I’m sorry,” he muttered to Percival before gently lifting his leg again and grasping the boot. “I’ve got to.”

Percival moaned out a string of swear words and pleas, begging Gwaine not to do it, and Gwaine had to look away from his friend’s agonized face before his resolve faded. He silently begged Merlin and Arthur to find them soon.

Hooking two fingers into the top of Percival’s boot, he eased it away from his leg at the same time his other hand pulled it down. He caught sight of blood, a lot of blood, and felt the sharp lump of protruding bone against his knuckle as he slid the boot over it.

Percival roared, hands flying to his thigh to brace his leg, even as he threw his head back in agony. The yell subsided and he sagged, unconscious. Gwaine gave his other leg a squeeze, an apology, before he tossed the boot away and began carefully rolling his blood-soaked breeches up.

If his shouts for Merlin and Arthur hadn’t been loud enough, he was sure that that scream would have been. He hoped they’d hurry up, because he really didn’t know what to do.

And then, as if someone had heard his prayers, there was a crashing in the undergrowth nearby and Merlin burst through the trees, his face white, closely followed by Arthur. Gwaine could have sobbed with relief. Now Merlin was here, he knew Percival was in good hands.

**Author's Note:**

> I love any and all comments!


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